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THE AMERICAN HOTEL & Lodging Association and the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International Americas have formed a partnership that will more closely align the two associations to benefit their respective members and advance the hospitality industry, AHLA said in a statement. Also, AHLA and its technology committee, HTNG, announced the inaugural AHLA Technology Acceleration Award, a new program to recognize companies that are advancing innovation in hospitality technology. According to the statement, the partnership will create linkages to the industry's sales, marketing, and revenue optimization professionals for AHLA, while expanding HSMAI's organizational reach by aligning it with America's largest hotel association. Under the new agreement, effective April 25, AHLA will provide HSMAI with opportunities to participate in AHLA's On the Road events, and HSMAI will promote the events to its members and local chapters. AHLA and HSMAI will also promote each other's events, campaigns, and education and certification programs, and have reciprocal participation in distribution-focused committees. As per the agreement, AHLA and HSMAI will further explore opportunities to align the work of both organizations' foundations to address industry-wide initiatives on workforce and promoting Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. AHLA and HSMAI leadership will meet regularly to discuss and coordinate key strategic industry issues and shared objectives, the agreement noted. AHLA said the AHLA-HSMAI partnership expands upon a relationship the two organizations started early last year, when HSMAI became a content partner for AHLA's On The Road state hotel conference series, offering innovative and exclusive revenue generation insights at On The Road events.

DAVID KONG, THE recently retired CEO of Best Western Hotel Group, has launched DEI Advisors, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping women and other minority groups to achieve their career aspirations. Specifically, it plans to close the diversity gap that still exists on the upper, leadership levels of the hospitality industry. Based in Scottsdale, Arizona, DEI Advisors will conduct a series of interviews with industry leaders with the intent of sharing inspiration and guidance to help individuals navigate their careers. The interviews will teach how to overcome conscious and unconscious bias, seek advancement, face structural barriers successfully, establish networks, advocates and mentors and better integrate their work life and personal life. "I formed DEI Advisors as a non-profit organization to collect and share insights and learnings from industry leaders," said Kong, who is DEI Advisors principal and founder. "While many companies are doing wonderful work in the areas of DEI, individuals must also be responsible, and feel empowered, for their own personal growth and career aspirations. Essentially, we're aiming to prepare future leaders in the industry for the driver seat of their own journey, where they get to truly help create and advocate for their own destiny."

U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE Vivek Ramaswamy and AAHOA chairman Bharat Patel have delved into hospitality industry issues at the inaugural AAHOA 2024 Presidential Candidate Forum. The virtual forum allowed AAHOA members and viewers to hear directly from Ramaswamy about his policy priorities, his vision for the future of America and the role of Asian Americans in the hospitality industry, AAHOA said in a statement. "Ramaswamy's choice to directly engage with AAHOA Members highlights our industry's vital contribution to the nation's economy," said Bharat Patel, AAHOA chairman. "It was an honor to meet with him on behalf of AAHOA members. It's promising to witness a presidential candidate acknowledging the substantial influence that AAHOA members exert both as everyday citizens and as dynamic entrepreneurs and small business proprietors driving the hospitality industry of this great nation.'"

THE AMERICAN HOTEL & Lodging Association has announced the dates, cities, and registration information for its "On the Road" State Hotel Conferences for 17 states in 2023. The conferences will provide hoteliers, suppliers, and service providers opportunities to connect with their peers as well as hospitality and policy leaders to learn about the latest news and information affecting the hotel and lodging industry, AHLA said in a statement. Anyone who works in the hotel industry can attend these half-day, free events, it added. "AHLA's 'On The Road' State Hotel Conferences are designed to help local hoteliers connect with their peers, gain insights on national and local market business performance trends and learn from top hospitality leaders, service providers and policy experts," said Chip Rogers, AHLA president and CEO. "The events are also a vital tool to help AHLA build coalitions, grow our grassroots network and rally hoteliers around the industry's goals and initiatives. We are excited to bring AHLA's successful On The Road State Hotel Conference series to a record number of cities in 2023." AHLA will host these conferences in partnership with its state or city lodging association partners. Since starting with four events in 2021, AHLA's On The Road State Hotel Conferences have brought together thousands of hoteliers in cities across the nation. Last year, 11 events were held.

REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT management firm Noble Investment Group partnered with Host Hotels & Resorts to tap and expand travel, leisure and hospitality opportunities, a statement said. As part of the initiative, Host will invest $150 million as a limited partner in an existing Noble investment vehicle and provide Noble with first-look at select-service and extended-stay hotel opportunities sourced through Host's channels. Host also will become a minority investment partner in Noble's fee-based asset management business, according to Noble's press release. "As we continue to expand our institutional investment management platform, this strategic partnership further augments Noble's ability to develop, source, and execute innovative growth strategies in travel, leisure, and hospitality," said Mit Shah, Noble's CEO. According to the statement, the partnership will combine Noble's operational expertise and development acumen with Host's scale, market insights, data analytics, and breadth of resources. They aim to source differentiated investment strategies including property technology solutions, development, and alternative lodging.

Recently, Larry Cuculic, president and CEO of BWH Hotel Group, sat down with Asian Hospitality to share his insights into the status of the Best Western Hotel brand and the industry as a whole. A video of the entire interview, the first in Asian Hospitality's "Leadership Series," is now available on the magazine's website. Subjects included the labor crisis, attracting new franchisees and the state of the economy. Below are excerpts from the interview along with additional information on the subjects discussed, including franchise relations, the labor crisis and changes the company has seen since his appointment to the top role. Franchise relations One of the biggest issues Cuculic discusses in the interview is maintaining positive relations with Best Western franchisees. He emphasized the need for openness and transparency. "We disclose all of our contract terms throughout the negotiation. I tell our people, I believe in karma," Cuculic said in the Leadership Series interview. "Karma doesn't forget a name or an address. If you treat someone who's thinking about coming into your brand reasonably fairly, and then when they sign a contract, you drive revenue to them, that's a win-win relationship. That's what we want. If you don't have that win-win relationship, they're going to leave and your reputation is that you don't support your hoteliers or believe in that relationship, which then hinders development." Cuculic said his training at West Point Military Academy and law school at Notre Dame University instilled in him an innate sense of fairness. Also, due to its structure, the company has to involve its members in every decision. "I'm the president, CEO of Best Western, I cannot design a governance change," Cuculic said. "The members vote on all those changes. Our board of directors approves our contracts."

STR HAS UNVEILED the forward-looking component of its product "Forward STAR" in 104 new markets/submarkets across the U.S. and Canada. Forward STAR, which is presently live in 450 areas around the globe, allows hotel property and portfolio users to benchmark the next 365 days of occupancy on the books against the competition and market. "This launch represents our largest Forward STAR expansion to date and adds significant value to our overall benchmarking offering," said Amanda Hite, STR's president. "Adding to the historical data that drives so many operational decisions around the industry, this directly sourced forward data provides intel into where hotels can gain available business, adjust their approach to pricing, and implement actions around market events. When combining historical metrics, profitability data and these forward bookings insights, industry stakeholders are positioned to analyze performance from every angle." According to the statement, Forward STAR was launched in 17 of the country's 25 largest hotel markets, including Las Vegas, New York City, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Boston and Phoenix. More granular submarkets were added with the addition of central business districts in markets such as Austin, Chicago, Nashville and New Orleans as well as airport submarkets in areas such as Miami, San Francisco and Bradenton, Florida.

KNOWLAND, A HOSPITALITY data-as-a-service provider, recently integrated a sub-market filter into its search and dashboard functions, adding to its market snapshot and new-to-market capabilities. This new feature enables precise filtering down to the sub-market level within larger markets, identifying localized opportunities, Knowland said in a statement. "To stay agile in this competitive industry, hotel sellers must be savvy about community activity," said Jeff Bzdawka, Knowland's CEO. "With this localized market view, they see opportunities in their immediate area rather than sifting through broad datasets. We continue to innovate our platform with new features and functionalities to help sales teams excel in account-based selling and automate the sales process for better outcomes." Hotel sales teams rely on detailed data analytics for sourcing new business, Knowland said. The sub-market filter provides accessible metrics on top neighborhoods, aiding teams in adopting an account-based selling approach.

WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE can help hotels better deal their reduced workforce, according to a white paper from Unifocus. The paper examines the persistent labor shortage in the hotel industry, while outlining strategies for operators to adapt for sustained efficiency and profitability. The white paper, titled 'The hotelier's definitive guide to success amid staffing shortages,' offers strategies for cost control, optimizing staffing, and reducing turnover to create a sustainable and predictable operational framework, Unifocus said in a statement. It gives insights into lessons drawn from the gig economy, strategies for upholding service excellence with fewer available workers, and means to assess the sustained advantages of these approaches. Roughly 92 percent of hotels experiencing staffing shortages despite job growth in the second quarter of 2023, Unifocus said.

CONTACTLESS CHECK-IN TECHNOLOGY firm Virdee is now integrated with commerce technology platform FreedomPay. The companies will offer a PCI-validated, point-to-point encryption solution with EMV, NFC, currency conversion and real-time data capabilities. The transition will help Virdee to offer end-to-end protection for credit card payments made through FreedomPay's cloud-based payments platform. It also provided FreedomPay compatibility with Virdee's check-in/check-out process with software for identity verification, payment collection, access control and remote support, according to Virdee. "Our integration with Virdee offers our customers expanded options, flexibility and, most important, security," said Chris Kronenthal, president of FreedomPay. "We help streamline and simplify complex payment options, while providing a single flow of data to facilitate consumer insights and engagement for our hotel clients. We're proud to partner with best-in-class solution providers, like Virdee, as we work together to revolutionize hotel operations and guest-facing technologies."

U.S. HOTEL REVENUE and profitability saw a rise in October, propelled by increased group demand across the top 25 markets, according to CoStar's October 2023 Profit & Loss data. Meanwhile, the U.S. hospitality industry also witnessed its largest year-over-year increases in GOPPAR and TRevPAR since March 2023. In October, GOPPAR reached $97.45, marking a 3.7 percent increase from the same month in 2022. TRevPAR stood at $240.74, indicating a 4 percent increase, whereas EBITDA PAR amounted to $69.60, down 1.2 percent from September 2022. Labor costs notably rose to $74.48, reflecting a 5.9 percent increase. "The top 25 markets have demonstrated an 11 percent year-to-date increase in GOPPAR, surpassing a 14 percent rise in labor costs," said Audrey Kallman, research analyst at STR. "This double-digit GOPPAR growth is over 10 times the level observed in all other markets. New York City, a prominent business-centric market, spearheaded growth in the metric across major markets both on a year-to-date and monthly basis."

U.S. HOTEL PERFORMANCE has increased in the second week of September compared to the previous week, according to CoStar. However, year-over-year comparisons remained mixed. Occupancy stood at 68.5 percent for the week ending on Oct. 14, a slight uptick from the previous week's 67.8 percent, and a marginal year-over-year decline of 2.3 percent. ADR increased to $164.25, up from the previous week's $163.19, marking a 3.2 percent surge compared to the previous year. RevPAR also showed improvement, reaching $112.51, surpassing the previous week's $110.68, and reflecting a 0.8 percent rise from 2022. Among the top 25 markets, Oahu Island experienced the highest year-over-year growth in occupancy, rising by 17.8 percent to reach 85.2 percent, while RevPAR increased by 29.7 percent to $243.22.